NFL Donates to Wilkes Schools
The National Football League Alumni, a charitable and educational organization, recently donated $43,000 for the new student art gallery at Wilkes County Schools' central office. The donation came from the NFL Alumni/Shriners summer golf tournament at Jefferson Landing in Ashe County.

This is the fourth year that the tournament has been held at Jefferson Landing. Proceeds are divided among the Shriners Cincinnati Burn Hospital and various educational programs in Wilkes and Ashe counties.

Foxx: Media Ignores Good Economic News
38 straight months of job creation. Nearly 7 million new jobs. Lower unemployment than any time since the post-world war 2 years. Fifth-district congresswoman Virginia Foxx says those are some of the facts of the booming U-S economy. On a recent Focus on the Foothills interview with 3WC’s Angela Henley, Foxx said the economic good news – fueled by tax cuts passed by the Republican-led House and Senate – are being ignored by the national media. She predicts once Democrats are in power that will change -- and she gives it less than a month.

Unsuccessful Break-Ins
An attempted burglary caused expensive damage to a roll-up door at a local self-storage business. Airport Rd & Highway 268 Mini Storage reported the break-in attempt late last week. Someone tried to break open the hasp on one of the storage units, but was unsuccessful. Still, the attempts caused 500-dollars damage to the storage unit door. Sheriff Deputies say they have no suspects at this time.

A rural Wilkesboro woman reports someone tried to break in to her house, but they were scared off. Wanda Morrison tells deputies she saw a person pull open her back screen door and try to open the door to the house. But the intended burglar heard another car and ran off before breaking in the door. Morrison says the man appeared to have a vehicle nearby, and she gave deputies a description and a partial tag number. So far, they have not located the car.

Mailbox Vandalized
Sometime Sunday night or early Monday, another Wilkes resident was the victim of mailbox vandalism. Doris Wiles reported the incident Monday morning. She says she went outside to find the mailbox damaged, but doesn’t remember hearing anything out of place that night. Deputies are making extra patrols of the area, but neighbors don’t report hearing anything, either.

Domestic Humiliation
A case of domestic violence reported late Monday night went from verbal abuse to degrading behavior. Although the man has been charged with assaulting his wife, we’re not going to identify either person, because of the humiliating nature of the acts he’s alleged to have committed.

Deputies were called to the home shortly before midnight Monday evening. The woman was sitting on the front porch, and told them her husband was inside, drunk, and had assaulted her. A deputy found him at the other end of the house, highly intoxicated, and when he asked the man how much he’d had to drink, he was told “too many.”

Here’s what the woman says happened: the husband came home about 6:30, carrying a 12-pack and sporting an attitude. She says she laid down on the couch to try and sleep, so as not to provoke him. Through the evening, the man drank continuously, and over time poured a number of liquids on her as she laid on the couch. First it was beer. Then he spit on her, the woman says. That was followed by a two-liter of cola, a jar of pickles. At some point, the woman says she passed out from a panic attack.

She woke up to find he had dumped a bag of kitty litter on her, followed by squirting a bottle of hand cream all over her, the couch, and the living room. At that point, the crime report stops listing the degrading things the man allegedly did to his wife, summarizing it as “much more.”

The man was arrested and charged with assault on a woman.

Bar Code Switch Leads to Charges
A Wilkes man is charged with theft, after a loss prevention officer at Lowes saw him switch bar code labels from two inexpensive items to two costly tools. 23-year old Daniel Reese is charged with stealing a 369-dollar chainsaw and a 334-dollar tool kit. The loss prevention officer at Lowes says Reese loaded up the items and went through the self-checkout area, appearing to have paid for them. But his total was not the 703-dollars it should have been. Apparently, the security tape doesn’t show Reese making the bar code tag switch, but he told the loss prevention officer and the Wilkesboro police officer at the scene that’s what he’d done.

Woman Charged for Having Drug Paraphernalia
A disturbance at a local convenience store leads to the arrest of a woman on drug paraphernalia charges. Wilkesboro police were called to the Brushy Mountain Run-In Monday afternoon. They say a woman was acting extremely suspicious when they arrived. As one of the officers administered a field sobriety test, the other searched Susan Pardues’ car, after Pardue gave permission for a search. That officer found three brass smoking pipes and mesh wire, both signs of crack cocaine. Pardue was arrested, and cited for possession of drug paraphernalia.

Kids and ATV's: New Safety Class Required
Any child that finds a brand new ATV under the tree on Christmas morning will also have to enroll in a mandatory half-day safety class.

A new state law went into effect in October that makes it a requirement before they ride. Doctors stress that riding an ATV is dangerous and those that fail to observe the new laws will only increase their chances of being hurt or killed.

North Carolina law also prohibits anyone under the age of 8 from riding an ATV, and there are specific engine guidelines for other ages.

Almost 90 percent of child-ATV injuries occur when the child is attempting to operate an adult-sized vehicle. In recent years, ATV manufactures have tweaked set-ups in order to provide a safer ride for younger riders.

College Park BP Burglarized
Wilkesboro police say a local convenience store was the victim of a burglary this weekend. The alarm at the College Park B-P went off early the morning of the 9th, and when officers arrived, they found the front window had been broken out of the store. After securing the store, the officers report they did nto find anyone in or near the building. They had to search for a little while to locate the manager’s phone number, but after they called him, he was able to determine the thief had stolen about 75 cartons of Marlboros, valued at two-thousand dollars. No suspects so far.

Diesel Fuel Siphoned from WCC Training Truck
Wilkes Communty College was the victim of a fuel theft recently. Wilkesboro police report sometime late on the 8th or early the 9th, somebody drained 100 gallons of diesel fuel out of the tank of the tractor-trailer rig used for student driver training. College officials say the truck was filled up on the 8th, and the morning of the 9th it had less than a quarter tank. Police say the truck was parked in a dirt lot across from Beacon Ridge. The investigation continues.

Yadkin County Chickenpox on Decline
Yadkin County health officials say the number of cases of chickenpox at Jonesville Elementary School seems to be leveling off.

Michael Reavis, Yadkin's health director, says fewer than five new cases of chickenpox were reported in the past week. Earlier this month, there were about 70 total cases reported.

The outbreak hit hardest at Jonesville Elementary School where a girl who had been sick with the chickenpox later died. Health officials have not confirmed yet whether the disease was responsible for her death.

The Yadkin County Health Department has given more than 800 chickenpox vaccinations since the outbreak began. Reavis said yesterday that there are only a limited number of doses left, and those are reserved for children ages 18 and younger who have not received their first dose.

Drunk Driver Clocked at 71 mph
Wilkesboro police have charged a 48-year old Wilkes man with driving under the influence, after an officer clocked the man speeding through town at more than 70 miles an hour. It happened Saturday afternoon on Highway 421. An officer on routine patrol spotted Robert Stewart Yow driving east on 421 at an estimated 70 miles an hour. As he turned on his blue lights, the officer hit the radar gun and confirmed it: 71 miles an hour. The limit is 50 in that vicinity. When the officer got him stopeed in a business parking lot, he noticed Yow smelled of beer. Yow admitted havng one beer before leaving home, but failed several field sobriety tests, and ended up blowing a .17 on the intoxilyzer. The officer also found a cold Miller Light stuffed under the driver’s seat. He was arrested on misdemeanor DUI and speeding charges, and is scheduled for a court appearance in February.

Um, Maybe You Shouldn't Drag Other People?
An argument between a woman and her boyfriend ended with him dragging her up their driveway and her calling the sheriff’s office. Deputies were called ot the couple’s Millers Creek home Friday night. The woman told them she and the man had been arguing most of the day. A friend came over to help her leave for a while, and the woman says her boyfriend went outside and put several dents in her friend’s car. The friend backed out, waiting for the victim at the end of the driveway. When the woman got partway down the driveway, the man came back out of the house and dragged her, up the driveway toward the house. When deputies arrived, 44-year odl Daniel Mark Absher was arrested on a charge of assault on a female.

Cold Snap May Have Caused Crackle, Pop
The recent cold snap may be to blame for what’s being investigated right now as a possible car break-in. A North Wilkesboro woman called sheriff deputies Friday morning to report the passenger window of her car had been broken out during the night. Deputies didn’t find anything inside or outside the car that might have been used to break a window, and nothing had been taken. They suspect the window popped due to suddenly contracting as the cold air settled in Friday morning.

Rock Creek Storage Building, Carts Burn
Fire has burned out a golf cart storage building at Rock Creek Golf Course. Fire Marshall Nich
Hamby tells 3WC News the fire was reported at the Rock Creek clubhouse about 8:25 this morning, but the storage building is actually right next to the clubhouse, which didn’t sustain any structural damage.

One of the wood stoves being used to heat the building apparently had a loose connection to the chimney. That loose connection caught fire, and before course personnel could get it doused, the fire had worked into the chimney and fully involved the storage building. Fortunately, none of the staff or firefighters suffered any injury. Hamby says the loss to the building and contents is complete, but he was unable to make a dollar value estimate yet. Three departments helped fight the blaze. In spite of the flashing lights, smoke and fire trucks, the course remained open, and Hamby said Rock Creek had other carts stored in a different building, so they will still have carts to rent.

Speed + Alcohol = Arrest
A short chase resulted in sheriff deputies arresting a North Wilkesboro woman for driving under the influence and speeding. Deputies leaving another call late Friday night spotted 19-year old Cassie Mahaffey barreling down highway 18 North at an excessive speed. They turned on their blue lights and turned around, finally stopping Mahaffey outside her home on Sparta Road. As they were questioning her, deputies say they could smell alcohol on her breath, and she tested just over the legal limit twice. Mahaffey stands charged with driving while intoxicated and excessive speed, and could face charges for underage drinking.

Convenience Store Burglarized
A burglar, or more than one, hit a Wilkes convenience store over the weekend. The break-iun was reported early Sunday at the Walker Community Store. An empployee reported during the night someone had pried open a garage door, then broken the hasp off an interior door to gain access to the store. The thief or thieves carted off 600-dollars worht of cigarettes, over 200-dollars of snuff, 24 packs of rolling papers, 100 packages of candy, plus about 250-dollars in coins, a 22-caliber rifle, several knives and a watch. The total value of the stolen items is nearly 14-hundred dollars. Deputies have no suspects at this time.

Blood Need Urgent
Red Cross officials are issuing an urgent plea for blood donors this Christmas season. They say all types are needed, but this eyar they are especially short of Type O and Type B blood. Four blood drives have been held in Wilkes aleady this month; another is scheduled for Friday afternoon at the Wilkes County Office Building.

Yadkin Chicken Pox Outbreak
An eight-year old Yadkin county child has died of chicken pox, and county officials say they’ve given out over 800 doses of the chicken pox vaccine in the past week. Starting today, health department officials in Yadkin are reserving the vaccine only for children up to the age of 18. It takes two doses to build up immunity; you can still get chicken pox after the first dose.

Blood Supply Dangerously Low
Two more blood drives are being held today, as Red Cross officials say blood supplies remain dangerously low this time of year. Both blood drives today are in the afternoon, from 2 until 6:30pm at VFW Post 11-42 and at the Speedway Ruritan Club.

Robert F. Fechner, chief executive officer of the American Red Cross Carolinas Blood Services Region, said in a recent news release, “the holidays are a traditionally challenging time for blood collection. The blood supply often dips to dangerously low levels this time of year. By making a donation during this holiday season, individuals can help avoid a blood shortage and brighten the season for hospital patients and their families.”

More than 1,600 units of blood and blood products are needed each day by patients in the 103 area hospitals served by the Carolinas Blood Services Region. Currently all blood types are in need, however individuals with blood types O and B are especially encouraged to come in and give.

Car on Side of Road Burglarized
A man on his way through town to Jefferson says his car broke down along the highway, and them someone broke into it while he was gone to get help. Antonio Carl left his car on the side of Highway 421 for nearly a week after it broke down December 3rd. He came back on the 8th to tow the car home, but found he didn’t have the right equipment to do so. In looking around the car, he noticed the passenger window had been broken. He reports a cell phone, a DVD player and several CDs and DVS were taken, with a total value of about 500-dollars. There are no suspects or leads at this time.

Eviction Dispute Leads to Property Damage
A dispute between a landlord and someone she’s trying to evict has led to a crime report being filed for damage to her property. Mary Eller tells sheriff deputies she believes the man she’s been working to evict from one of her rental properties is the same person who used a pickup truck to spin up large ruts in the front yard of the rental house. The deputy taking the report told Ms. Eller she should pursue the damage to property claim through the courts alongside the eviction process.

Plane Crashes Near Taylorsville
Two people died when their small plane crashed Sunday just after take-off in Alexander County. Authorities said the plane crashed behind a service station just before 3:30 p.m. near Taylorsville.

An FAA spokeswoman said the single-engine, fixed-wing plane was an experimental aircraft. It crashed on its way back to Taylorsville Airport, a small airstrip privately owned by the Taylorsville Flying Club.

The sheriff's office said 44-year-old Leon Marion Fagan Jr., the plane's owner, and 53-year-old William Kermit "Billy" Little were killed. Both were from Taylorsville.

Tool Box Broken Into
A Hays man says someone broke into his pickup tool box and stole more than 900-dollars worth of tools. Earl Byrd tells sheriff deputies he parked his truck in an open field near Traphill last Thursday afternoon and traipsed off into the woods to go hunting. When he got back after sunset, he noticed some items gone from the truck bed, but didn’t have enough light to really tell what was going on. The next morning, Byrd looked through the tool box in the back of the truck, and discovered someone had stolen tools including several cordless drills, wrenches, a miter box, a bow saw, and several other tools. Deputies have listed a suspect, but he has not been arrested so far.